[Introduced February 13, 2009; referred to the Committee on the
Judiciary.]

____________

A BILL to amend and reenact §62-8-1 and §62-8-2 of the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended, all relating to offenses by or
against inmates; and penalties.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §62-8-1 and §62-8-2 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931,
as amended, be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:ARTICLE 8. CRIMES BY AND PROCEEDING AGAINST INMATES.
§62-8-1. Offenses by inmates; conspiracy; sexual assault.(a) A person imprisoned or otherwise in the custody of the
Commissioner of Corrections or the Executive Director of the
Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority is guilty of a
felony if he or she kills, wounds or inflicts other bodily injury
upon any person at any correctional facility; or breaks, cuts or
injures, or sets fire to any building, fixture or fastening of any
correctional facility, or jail or any part thereof, for the purpose of escaping or aiding any other inmate to escape therefrom, or
renders any correctional facility or jail less secure as a place of
confinement; or makes, procures, secretes or has in his or her
possession, any instrument, tool or other thing for such purpose,
or with intent to kill, wound or inflict bodily injury; or resists
the lawful authority of an officer or guard of any correctional
facility or jail for such purpose or with such intent. Any three
or more inmates so confined, or in such custody, who conspire
together to commit any offense mentioned in this section are each
guilty of a felony.(b) Any person imprisoned or otherwise in the custody of the
Commissioner of Corrections or the Executive Director of the
Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority is guilty of a
felony if such person engages in sexual intercourse or sexual
intrusion, as defined by section one, article eight-b, chapter
sixty-one of this code, with another person imprisoned or otherwise
in the custody of the Commissioner of Corrections or the Executive
Director of the Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority
and, in so doing:
(1) Inflicts serious bodily injury upon anyone; or
(2) Employs a deadly weapon in the commission of the act; or
(3) Exerts forcible compulsion over another person; or
(4) Commits such act with another person who is physically
helpless.
(c) Any person not imprisoned or otherwise in the custody of
the Commissioner of Corrections or the Executive Director of the
Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority is guilty of a
felony if such person engages in sexual intercourse or sexual
intrusion, as defined by section one, article eight-b, chapter
sixty-one of this code, with another person imprisoned or otherwise
in the custody of the Commissioner of Corrections or the Executive
Director of the Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority.

§62-8-2. Punishment of convicts; no discharge from correctional
institution while prosecution is pending.

(a) Any inmate who violates the provisions of (subsection (a)
of) section one of this article and the violation results in the
death of any person is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction
thereof, shall be confined in a state correctional facility for
life, and he or she shall not be eligible for parole,
notwithstanding the provisions of article twelve, chapter sixty-two
of this code.
(b) Any inmate who violates the provisions of subsection (a)
of section one of this article and is serving a term of confinement
for life, is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, he or
she may not be eligible for parole, notwithstanding the provisions
of article twelve, chapter sixty-two of this code.
(c) Any inmate who is not serving a term of confinement for
life and who violates the provisions of subsection (a) of section one of this article and whose violation did not result in the death
of any person is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof,
shall be confined in a state correctional facility not less than
one nor more than five years. Any term of confinement imposed
pursuant to this subsection is to be consecutive to any term of
confinement already imposed.(d) Any inmate who violates the provisions of subsection (b)
of section one of this article is guilty of a felony and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be confined in a state correctional
facility for an indeterminate sentence of not less than fifteen
years nor more than thirty-five years.(e) Any person violating the provisions of subsection (c) of
section one of this article is guilty of a felony and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be confined in a state correctional
facility for an indeterminate sentence of not less than one nor
more than five years.(d)(f) An inmate prosecuted for an offense under this article
may not be discharged from a state correctional facility while the
prosecution is pending.(e)(g) Any person convicted pursuant to the provisions of
this section may not be sentenced under sections eighteen or
nineteen, article eleven, chapter sixty-one of this code:
Provided, That if an inmate commits an offense punishable by
confinement in a state correctional facility, other than the offenses defined in subsection (a) of section one of this article,
he or she shall be punished as if he or she had been discharged
before committing the offense.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide that any inmate
who engages in sexual assault of another inmate is guilty of a
felony and, shall be confined for not less than fifteen years nor
more than thirty-five years. The bill further provides that any
person not imprisoned who engages in sexual intercourse or sexual
intrusion with an inmate is guilty of a felony and, shall be
confined for not less than one year nor more than five years.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.

This bill was recommended for introduction and passage during
the 2009 Regular Session of the Legislature by the Legislative
Oversight Committee on Regional Jail and Correctional Facility
Authority.